Te Alabaré

From my office here at the school, I can hear many of the classrooms and what they are working on. This is a blessing (and some days a curse :) ).

Today I was listening to our preschool classroom and I kept hearing the same phrase "te alabare". Its a short part of a popular worship song here. Translated it means "I will worship you". Our classes sing frequently, but I kept hearing this phrase in the same sweet little voice, so I decided to investigate. Turns out it was coming from one of our newer students. She is autistic and when she started here in the fall she said very few words, and she said even fewer words without being asked to do so.

Hearing her sing today made me say "te alabare". God is at work here. It is small moments like this one that help me to know what I am doing here is making a difference.

"I will worship You"

In 2008 I helped Melvin put pen to paper and we (mostly he) wrote lyrics to 11 songs. they are worship songs that are an expression of Melvin's relationship with God. Some are straight worship, one is basically his testimony to music, and others express his desire that others come to know Christ.

I have very minimal talents when it comes to composing music or playing the guitar, so for a long time we were stuck. enter Richard. Richard, a friend of mine from college, befriended Melvin on a mission trip long ago. He agreed to help us put music to Melvin's lyrics.

The CD "Úsame Señor" went on sale this week! We are selling copies here at the SI base and it is now available online at Amazon and on itunes. I am super excited to see this project fulfilled!

All the money from the CD's we sell at the base goes straight to Melvin. We are using some of the online sales to offset the cost of producing and recording the CD.

To God be the Glory!!!!

teams, teams, teams

It seems like there is no longer a season that is not "teams season" here at Students International. This spring we have already hosted 4 teams. We have been blessed by students from Joshua Wilderness Institute, ladies from Wintonbury, Connecticut and norther Indiana, students from Jupiter, FL and James Madison University and we are finishing up with this week's team from CA and TX. It has been a blessing to have all of you here at Centro Especial Genesis. The kids constantly ask where are the "americanos". Our kids love having the groups and we love seeing you students connect so well with the kids here at our school!

Christmas time is here again?

Recently we received a phone call from a member of the community asking if they could send gifts to the kids. Today we received really cool cars and dolls for all the kids in Genesis!!! Seems that they like their new toys!!!

Dios es Fiel (God is Faithful)

About a month ago, I sent out a letter asking for financial support. We needed $1000 to cover an old debt and to pay for the transportation of one of our kids for the rest of the year. God provided $1500!!! A week ago, I was able to look at a basic curriculum in spanish for math, reading, science, and health. Yesterday it arrived costing us $540!!! God is faithful to provide for our needs even before we know them!!!

This is My Son in Whom I am Well Pleased

Who said, "This is my son in whom I am well pleased?"

This was the first question posed to our parents at a recent parents meeting. Our speaker, Steve Spicer, has a unique perspective on this question. Steve has a son, Scott, who has a disability. While in the DR for a men's conference, they kindly agreed to come share their story with our parents.

Our parents answered the question with "Dios" (God). Correct!

Steve went on to say that as parents of children with special needs, they needed to say this about their own sons and daughters. Steve shared with our parents the story of his journey with Scott and encouraged them to see the blessing that they have been given in the form of their sons and daughters.

By the end of the meeting, many parents were in tears and many wanted to share with Steve and Scott. This was by far one of our most successful parent meetings in recent history.

In other news, the kids are back to school for our spring trimester. There have been a couple of changes in the faces as some kids moved away and others joined in to fill their space.

The biggest change is that Fausto Ramos has stepped down from his ministry here in the DR for personal reasons. He will be greatly missed. Amy Green is now the director of Centro Especial Genesis.

We covet your prayers during this transition and are excited to see those of you who have plans to visit us this year!!!

Hey friends,

I need your help, well the school needs your help. We have a student, Anibal, who lives pretty far away from the school. Due to rising gas prices, and the cost of transportation here, the school owes quite a bit of money to the bus driver. Would you consider helping us keep Anibal in school by donating toward his transportation? We need $1,000 to pay what we owe and cover the rest of this school year! Please pray about helping us in this.

You can send a check to the home office of Students International

Students International

PO Box 2733

Visalia, CA 93279

Please include a note with your check "for Genesis transportation project"

Thanks so much and God bless,

Amy